Boulevard of Broken Dreams
by HawkAngel13
Summary: <html><head></head>Nico Di Angelo is in an unusual  and depressing  place. Being there makes him realize that, broken dreams don't always have to stay broken, and that he isn't the only one with dreams that never came true. WARNING: Some parts may be scary. Very depressing.</html>
1. Chapter 1

_Nico Di Angelo POV_

**Boulevard of Broken Dreams**

That's what the sign in front of me said. Seems fitting for me. _'No. No time for self-pity right now. Where am I?'_ I thought. I looked up at the street sign again, then at the street the sign was meant for. It was dark, gloomy, and to be honest (don't repeat this), I was kinda' scared. "Where am I?" I said aloud. I heard someone chuckle behind me. I drew my black sword quickly, and turned around. . . . Nothing. No one. Just darkness. I decided to walk towards that said darkness. I walked into it, and saw nothing. I tried to shadow travel, but somehow, I couldn't. I just kept walking. Finally, ahead, I saw a spot where it wasn't as dark. I walked forward, only to find myself back at the beginning of the street I started at. Okay, this was starting to get wierd. Then again, what _isn't_ wierd in my life? No, I'm not rambling on about my pitiful life this time, every demi-gods life is wierd! But this, this was different.

I decided it was time to explore this street. I walked past the sign, and onto the left sidewalk. I looked down at the junk lying around. Old toys, books, pictures. I picked up one of the pictures, I could see a blonde-haired person, but barely. I wiped off dust and dirt. _Annabeth!_ Luke, and Thalia too. Annabeth was really young in the photo. She was holding onto Luke's arm, a smile on her face. Thalia leaned on Luke's shoulder, arms crossed, grinning slyly. Luke had a small smile, and seemed comfortable in the photo. _'What is this picture doing on the Boulevard of Broken Dreams?'_ I folded the photo, and put it in my pocket. I'd give it back to Annabeth once I got back to Camp Half-Blood.

I kept walking, taking in all of my surroundings. Something I noticed, was a lot of this stuff was from demi-gods. An Aphrodite girl's flyer for a jewelry shop. Annabeth's photo. An Apollo kid's unfinished novel. I sat down and read some of it. I scoffed and threw it aside after reading the first few chapters. No wonder it was unfinished! I looked around, I'd been there for a while. It took me a long time to read that book, okay? I wasn't meant to read anything but Greek! I was starving. I yelled at the sky, "Hey! Got anything to eat around here?" Just to try it.

Much to my suprise, a little girl walked out of the darkness I had tried to walk through. She wore a white sundress, and had dark gold hair. Her blue eyes seemed calm, like a still pond. She looked about 6 years old. She walked up to me, and asked in a small voice, "May I help you?" "Yeah, first off, how long am I gonna' be here?" She seemed thoughtful, "That is not something I may tell you. I would if I knew though. Is there anything I can get you for your time being here?" I thought for a moment, "Something, _anything_ to eat." She smiled sweetly, and skipped off into the dark beginning of the boulevard. A few moments later, she skipped out, balancing a silver tray perfectly. She got down on her knees, and offered me the tray.

On the tray was a plate of spaghetti. With steaming meatballs and sauce. My mouth began to water, and I took the tray. I picked up the fork next to the plate, and began to eat. The little girl made herself comfortable, and waited for me to finish. The spaghetti tasted just like the spaghetti Bianca and I used to get at the Lotus Casino. It even had the same tang that only came from some weird spice Bianca used! Once I finished, I licked my lips. "Thanks," I said to the little girl. She giggled into her palm, then picked up a napkin from the tray, and wiped my face. I smiled sheepishly. The girl picked up the tray, and began to skip away. "Wait!" I called. She stopped, and turned to me, "I'll be back in a moment."

Moments later, the little girl walked over to me, barefoot, carrying an empty, glass cup. She sat down on the sidewalk next to me, and handed me the cup. "It is the same kind of cup as the ones you drink out of at Camp Half-Blood. Speak to it," she said. "Grape soda," I said hesitantly. Sure enough, the cup filled with the purple, fizzy liquid I had asked for. I took a big gulp, and turned to the girl, "What's your name?" She smiled, "My name is Lillian, or Lilly." I stuck out my empty hand, "Hi, Lilly, I'm Nico." She put her small hand in mine, held it firmly, and shook it.

"Do you know _why_ I'm here?" I asked. She shrugged, "Usually, people are sent here to realize that everyone's dreams have been broken, not just theirs. Perhaps that is why you are here, perhaps there is another reason. I am not told why people are sent here, I have to figure it out on my own. I can usually tell by people's attitude, what they are wearing, or what their actions are when they realize they are unable to leave on their own." "How long do people usually stay?" I asked. "In time here, usually a week. Time outside of this boulevard, a month. It is different here, and outside of this place." "How long have I been here?" I asked, suprised. "Time here, a few hours. Time outside of the boulevard, half a day." I looked down, depressed, "I wonder if-" "Yes, your friends are already looking for you. Despite what you think, they do care." Lilly put a hand on my shoulder encouragingly, and I felt better. At least I knew someone was looking for me. . .


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Hey! Sorry it took so long for me to update! I had this chapter pretty much done and I had the time! But no internet connection. Or my computer. Thanks for the great reviews, and good advice! Hope this meets your expectations, HawkAngel13. **

**Chapter 2**

After my discussion with Lilly, I decided to continue walking down the boulevard. I walked down the left sidewalk, and found something I thought I'd never see again. It was... my Mythomagic collection?

"I don't understand. I burned this stuff. How is it here?" I asked, rumaging through the collection I once spent all my (and Bianca's) allowance on.

"Let me guess, you wanted to have all of the figurines and cards. But then, you got older, and realized you didn't like it anymore. Just another stupid game to you, huh?" Lilly said.

I smiled a little, "I wanted to have the biggest collection in my school." I picked up some of the figurines. Zues with his master bolt, Apollo with his sun chariot, Dionysus with grapevines and a cup of wine. I remember calling Dionysus "the wine dude" the first time I was at Camp Half-Blood. I chuckled at that memory, then continued digging through the pile of Mythomagic figurines and their matching cards.

"I've spent many hours playing with these figurines," Lilly said, sitting down next to the pile. "You know how to play?" I asked.

Lilly shook her head, "Not quite, I merely fiddle with them. I may speak and know things like someone much older than I, but I _am_ only six. I need things to play with. So your collection isn't just collecting dust here on the boulevard." I remembered keeping one of my figurines. The one that wasn't in that pile. The Hades figurine Bianca gave to me. I vowed to never part ways with it, for sentimental reasons of course.

Eventually, I left behind my collection, and continued to explore. I sat down in a pile of trashed scrapbooks, and looked around. I found a painting of two people, a girl and a boy, on the beach at sunset. The girl had red, frizzy hair, and the boy had black hair. In the bottom, left-hand corner, the initials 'R.E.D.' were scribbled in black sharpie pen. Rachel Elizabeth Dare. Wow, I never guessed that one of her paintings would be here. I shrugged it off, and continued to rumage through scrapbooks, and other junk. It was very quiet, and I began to wonder where Lilly had gone. I looked around, stood, and walked around for a few moments, but didn't see her.

I decided that Lilly had something more important to do, although, it was kind of lonely without her around. . . . After a while, I started to squirm. "L-Lilly?" I called out awkwardly. She walked towards me, "Yes?"

"I have to go. Y'know-"

Lilly held up her hand, "Say no more. Follow me."

After finding the bathroom in some wierd abandoned building, and using it, Lilly took me to the top floor of the building. At the end of a hallway, there was a bedroom. It had a balcony, with one Hades of a view. You could see the whole boulevard! Everything from the eerie darkness at the start of the street, to the end that circled around in a cul-de-sac form. Now that I could see everything, I saw how far I had gotten down the boulevard. Ya' wanna' know? Not far at all. From where I stood, it looked like one sixteenth of the street. I was probably just imagining it, I needed to rest.

I walked back into the room, and looked around. It was dusty, and probably haunted, I could sense it. Lilly was lighting a candle, on a small table next to a hammock.

"You may stay here to sleep. When you awake, you must continue to explore the boulevard," Lilly said sternly.

"I must?" I asked, "By who's orders?"

Lilly sighed irritably, "The overseer of this boulevard!"

I crossed my arms, "And that would be?"

Lilly began to walk out, "No more questions, Di Angelo! Sleep, and when you awaken, explore. That is all." And with that, she left.

I decided to look for a shower. I didn't mind wearing my clothes again after showering, but I needed to shower. I walked down the hall, and opened a door on the right. Inside a man was on his hands and knees. He looked transparent, so did the blood gushing from a wound on his chest. He screamed, quietly, then turned his head, slowly, to look at me. He screamed, and tried to crawl towards me!

I backed up, and slammed the door. The screaming stopped, and everything was silent. As if nothing had happened. My heart was pounding. I was used to ghosts trying to crawl to me for mercy, or begging me to let them live or whatever, but this was different. I wasn't in the Underworld. At least, I don't think so. . . . .


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Hello, fans of fanfiction. This, is Chapter 3. Finally up. I hope you like it, if you have any advice, please feel free to let me know. I also appreciate reviews! Typing and writing constantly, HawkAngel13! **

**Chapter 3**

I continued walking down the hall, until I found a shower. I turned on the water, and fortunatly it worked. It was hot too. I was so relieved. I'm not some clean freak or anything, but being clean feels nice. I looked around, to make sure no freaky ghosts were gonna' jump out while I was showering, and finally decided it was safe.

After showering, I felt sleepy. I laid down on the hammock in the bedroom, and sighed. I didn't exactly feel 'at home' on the Boulevard of Broken Dreams, but it was a lot less creepy here. Gloomy? Yeah. Scary at some points? Definetly. Worse than the Underworld? Hades, no! I relaxed, and closed my eyes.

In my dream- sorry, _nightmare_, I was playing Mythomagic with Lilly. Then, she stopped, scared.

"Lilly, it's your turn," I said.

"Nico! Run!" I looked behind me, to see hundreds of ghosts running towards us.

We both got up, and began to run. One of the ghosts grabbed Lilly's ankle, and dragged her back to them. I kept running, even though I was leaving behind Lilly. One of the ghosts grabbed onto me, I tried shaking it off, but it slowed me down. Several ghosts piled onto me, dragging me down, into darkness. I fell. And I kept falling, until I hit rock bottom. Literally, I fell onto solid rock, in pitch black darkness.

"Prince of the Underworld. . . " someone whispered.

"What do you want from me? Where's Lilly? Why is she trapped here?" I yelled.

"Ghost King. . . " the voice said. The voice sounded familiar.

"What? Why am I here? Who are you?" I yelled, nervous now.

"Nico Di Angelo. . ." the voice whispered.

"_What?_" I asked.

"Our friend. I remember when I first met him. Him and his sister, Bianca," I finally recognized the voice. Percy? The darkness faded around me, and I saw my friends. Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, Grover, even Travis and Conner Stoll. Most of Camp Half-Blood was there. It was. . . A funeral.

"And now," Percy's voice cracked, "he'll be able to see his sister again."

Percy was a lot older. Probably in his 20's. Everyone else had gotten older too! Percy looked all choked up, and Annabeth was crying. Even _Thalia_ was crying! I walked up to the coffin, obviously, no one could see me. It was black, and had 'Di Angelo' engraved in it. This was _my _funeral! Wh-What happened to me?

Percy left the podium, and my dad stepped up to the podium. Everyone was stiff, of course. The god of the Underworld was standing at a podium in front of them, they were gonna' be stiff.

"It is unfortunate that my son died the way he did, but I assure you, he has gone to the Isles of Elysium. Where he will rest from now on," he said flatly.

Died the way he did? _How did I die?_ The ground beneath me gave away, and I fell again. I looked down, and saw what I was about to fall into. Fire. Pure fire. I screamed, preparing for the landing. But, when I hit the bottom, I woke up.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Welcome, fans of fanfiction, to Chapter 4 of Boulevard of Broken Dreams. Thanks so much for the new reviews, I really appreciate it. Thanks to you reviewers, I was motivated to write this chapter. It turned out longer than the others, much to my pleasure. I also noticed that I haven't done a disclaimer on my past chapters. So, I'll be doing that from now on. Still constantly typing and writing, HawkAngel13.**

**Disclaimer: I, HawkAngel13, do not own Nico Di Angelo, or any other PJATO character. I do not own PJATO either, all of that goes to Rick Riordan. I do, however, own Lillian Collins, and the plot to this story. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 4**

I sat straight up, panting. I looked around, and relaxed a little. "Just a dream. . . " I said, reassuringly. I looked at my nightstand. There, sat a plate of muffins, and an empty glass cup. A note sat next to it. On the front of the note 'Nico' was scribbled in blue marker. I stood up, went to the bathroom downstairs, and came back up. I picked up a muffin, and bit into it. Triple berry. I shoved the other half of the muffin into my mouth, wiped my hands on my jeans, and picked up the note.

'Nico, I am not supposed to help you today. I have to leave you alone. I made you muffins! Good luck. From: Lilly.'

The note was written in blue marker as well. Many things had been crossed out, and re-written with the right spelling. I don't know how I was able to read it, but I had no problem with it. I felt wierd inside, like there was something going on with Lilly, that she wasn't telling me. Then again, no one told me much of _anything_ here. It was starting to really irritate me! I mean, if I was here for a reason, how am I supposed to do what I need to here, if no one tells me anything? I grabbed another muffin, and shoved it whole in my mouth. I chewed angrily, and sat on my ragged hammock. I didn't think about it before, but maybe my dad was the overseer of this place. He _is_ the god of the Underworld. I could see him trapping me here for his amusement. He always had a cruel sense of humor. He never liked me either.

***Flashback***

_"I can't believe this! That rotten Percy! He let my beautiful daughter get killed!" Father yelled, pacing back and forthin his living room in the Underworld. Persephone sighed sorrowfully, patting my back. _

_"Poseidon will pay for this! He will __pay__!" Father growled. I boldly stepped forward, against my better judgement. _

_"Father, I'm still alive." Father turned to me, his eyes full of rage, _

_"Silence Nico! Bianca was perfect in every way. Then, she joined the huntresses. It bothered me, because I have never liked Artemis. But I respected her decision. Then, your wretched cousin let her get killed!" _

_I shifted uncomfortably, "It wasn't really Percy's fault, dad. It was destiny. Percy just-" _

_Father's face turned red, "It was Percy's fault for letting her get killed! Destiny can change! Percy chose not to fight it, let __your sister__ get killed, and __you__ want to __defend__ him?"_

_My dad stood over me, and I knew at that moment, if I said the wrong thing, I was a goner. "No sir. I'm sorry. I see now my fault," I said obidiently. _

_"If you __ever__ defy me again, you will never see another day. Do you understand?" Father said flatly. I nodded, scared out of my wits. _

_"Hades. You can't be serious! You couldn't killed your own child. He has his own opinion," Persephone said, baffled. I was shocked, Persephone wasn't one to defend me. Ever. _

_"I'm __dead __serious," my father grinned coldly. _

***End of Flashback***

I shuddered at the memory. I finished off the last muffin on the plate, and stood. I wiped my hands on my jeans, and spoke to my glass cup, "Orange juice." The cup filled with the tangy liquid, and I gulped it down quickly. I picked up my plate and cup, and walked out of the room.

I walked downstairs, and put my plate and cup on the counter. I figured Lilly would pick it up eventually. I walked out of the building, and onto the sidewalk. I found some drawings on old, yellowed paper. They were all of the same thing, a boy. He had black hair, and two different colored eyes. His left eye was dark blue, and his right eye was a light violet. He looked young. Younger than Lilly. In the top, right-hand corner, the name 'Blake' was written in big, black letters. In the bottom, right-hand corner, the words 'Drawn by Vydia' were scribbled in small, almost unreadable black letters. I looked through a few, until I got to one that was really wierd. It was a man. He had light brown hair, one blue eye, and one green eye. They were cat-like, but the man's smile was friendly. He was holding the boy named Blake. It seemed like a family portrait almost, but I guessed that the mom was the Vydia girl, that had drawn the pictures. In big letters, in the upper left-hand corner, 'Theron and Blake' was written.

The next picture was a . . . . . . _manticore?_ It was light brown, like Theron's hair, and had Theron's eyes. Ok. This was getting freaky. Theron was a manticore? Was Blake his kid? Can manticores have kids? What lady would _want_ to have kids with a manticore? I decided to go on to the next picture. It was _another_ manticore! But, this one stood on all fours, it was black, and . . . . had Blake's eyes. I instantly felt bad. The poor kid was the son of a manticore, and was cursed the same way. The picture had spots were water had been soaked into it. Like it had been left outside, it started raining, and Vydia went to get it before it was soaked. Or she had cried on it because she realized her son was a monster.

I sighed, and went on. The last drawing was Theron and Blake (both human), and a woman. She had long, silky, black hair, and blue eyes. 'Our Family' was written in delicate cursive at the top. 'By Vydia' stood faithfully in the lower, right-hand corner. Just like in all the other drawings. Theron looked amused in this drawing. So did Vydia. It probably had something to do with the fact that Blake looked extremely excited about something. That drawing made me wish I had a better father. Or at least that my mom or my sister were still living. I leaned back against a box. I accidently pushed it over, and some stuff spilled out of it. I got on my hands and knees, to see what had been in the box. Pictures. _Hundreds_ of pictures. They were all of one girl. And that one girl. . . . was _Lilly._


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Hiya readers! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out! I really meant to get around to writing it, but I've been kinda' busy lately. I had a fun weekend, and I just procrastinated 'til today. Again, sorry. By the way, if you've read the last chapter (you should have if you're reading this one!), you've read about Blake, Theron, and Vydia. Yeah, interesting characters huh? Yeah, remember them, 'cuz they're gonna' be imortant later on. Like, once this story is finished. I don't know how long Boulevard of Broken Dreams is gonna' be, but I'll try to figure it out, so you know what to expect. Sooooo. . . . . . yeah. Ok! Nico? *Nico* What? . . . . *HawkAngel13* Please do the disclaimer. *Nico* Do I have to? *HawkAngel13* DO IT! *Nico sighs* HawkAngel13 does not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or me, Nico Di Angelo. They belong to Rick Riordan. She does, however, own Lilly Collins, and the plot to this story. **

**Chapter 5**

I looked at some of the pictures. Lilly seemed so lively, and happy in them. She was often seen in sundresses, and wore a golden hairclip in her dark golden colored hair. In some pictures, she was seen with a woman. Probably her mother. Her mom had dark brown hair, and deep green eyes, she smiled in every photo. Then, there was a photo of Lilly, her mom, and _Apollo?_ What was the sun god doing with Lilly and her mom?

Then, it hit me, like a beam of light streaming through a glass window on Saturday morning. _Lilly's a demigoddess!_ Not only was she a demigoddess, but a daughter of Apollo! There was another photo with Apollo in it. He had his arms around Lilly's mom, and they seemed to be at the beach. It looked like Lilly hadn't been born at this point. Apollo wore a pair of Ray-bans, and smiled with teeth white as pearls. He seemed completely comfortable, where as Lilly's mom seemed awkward. Like she felt awkward with Apollo there. But, hey, I know I'd feel awkward with a god around. It's usually not a very comfortable situation when such a powerful being is around.

I looked through more of the pictures, and was about to look at the last few, when I saw something moving out of the corner of my eye. I turned my head to the right, only to see a flyer flutter down by me.

It read: '_Mysterious Flyer! . . . . . . Scary. . . . . _'

Oh yeah, terrifying. "Alright. What do you want, overseer of this place?" I called out. I waited for a response. . . . . . But all I got was silence, and a slight breeze. I heard a small clink, and turned quickly, my sword up and ready. I looked around, but all I saw was a small black velvet pouch. I walked to it, and read the note that sat by it. It read: '_Don't be so edgy. It'll be a boring day. A day for thinking. I thought you might like these._ _From Lilly._' I opened the black pouch, and found marbles. I sat down on the crisp brown grass, and poured the marbles out. They were glass, so they were a little translusent. They were red, black, and really dark purple. I smiled a little, sorrowfully, dark purple was Bianca's favorite color. She used to play marbles too. She wanted to be the champion marble player in our school. I figured that these were the special marbles that she never let me see.

I fiddled with the marbles for a bit, until I decided to play against myself. I won. Of course. I did that for awhile, playing against myself. Over and over and over again. Then I heard another clink. I looked around, until I saw a boulder marble. That's what they called the really big ones, right? Yeah. I think so. It was a mix of red, black, and dark purple. Swirled into something like a cat's eye looking thing. I heard a screech overhead, and I looked up. It was some kind of hawk. It looked small, and it was white. Could hawk's be white? I didn't bother answering that question, because the hawk dove down towards me. I gathered all the marbles quickly, put them into the black pouch, and took cover under a dead-looking tree. Then, I noticed that the hawk had gone back up into the sky. I was tired, bored, irritated, and I decided that I was going back to bed. I found a semi-comfortable spot on the ground, and used some of the photos as a pillow. It didn't take long for me to fall asleep.

**Another Author's Note: Okay, I know that this chapter was short and disappointing, but that because I have a contest for you readers! I need you to make up a crazy cat. You'll find out why in the next chapter. Rules: Crazy coloring, and accesories such as earrings, leg warmers, gloves, collars, necklaces, etc. are allowed. Angel wings, and dual tails are also allowed. Things that are ****NOT**** allowed- More than 2 tails, it cannot be larger than a regular cat, can't be mechanical, can't have any weapons besides its claws and teeth, and no part cat- part humans. I could make up my own, but I figured that this would be more interesting for you readers. The cat that I find most interesting wins. Ready. . . . . Set. . . . . Go! ~HawkAngel13. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Ok then. I am no longer on hiatus! Woo! I've noticed that this story won't be as long as I thought it was gonna' be. I'm lookin' at two more chapters after this one, maybe three? I say three because I may do an epilogue from Nico's view. Now, before I left on hiatus, I wasn't updating this because I was seriously un-motivated. Sorry, but one entry for my crazy cat contest? That's sad, peoples. But, I did really love DaughterofHecate1234's cat!So, here's chapter 6. Hope you like it. Please keep reading, and please review! ~HawkAngel13.**

**Disclaimer: I, HawkAngel13, do not own Nico Di Angelo or Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

**Chapter 6**

I woke up, feeling dizzy. I sat up, and heard a rustling sound, and whispers.

"Who's there?" I called out sleepily.

I heard someone giggle, "Not who. What!"

Then I heard, "Shhh!" and, "Calm down!"

"I said, who's there? Show yourself!" I demanded.

Out from behind a dead tree, a cat walked out. A _three-headed, purple and black striped cat!_ It wore neon orange socks on its front legs, and a santa hat on the head on my right (its left head). Its left head smiled sweetly, and used its tail to adjust its santa hat.

"I'm Mira!"

The head on its right, sighed, and rolled its green eyes, "And I'm Mona, and this hot-head here, is Myra." The middle head, Myra, pinned her ears down, and hissed at me.

"Wh-what do you want?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing! We were just watching you. Such a sweet boy, isn't he, Mona?" Mira squeaked. "Please excuse my younger sisters, they are so immature," Mona apoligized.

"Can we just eat him or something?" Myra asked impatiently.

"No, no, no, Myra! He's so cute! We can't eat _him!_" Mira whined.

"Plus, the master wouldn't like that very much," Mona said matter-of-factly.

"The master wouldn't like it! Ha!" Myra laughed.

"Look Myra, _you_ may not care what the master says, but Mira and I do!" Mona said.

"Hey! Leave me out of this!" Mira protested.

"Oh, shut up Mira!" Myra said irritably.

"No! _You_ shut up Myra!" Mona said. This went on for some time. I just sat there, baffled.

"What are you staring at, demi-god?" Myra yelled.

"Something _really_ freaky," I murmured.

Myra's eyes narrowed, "I heard that."

I gulped, and pulled out my sword. Mira gasped, Mona sighed, and Myra looked shocked.

"See? He has a sword! He's threatening us! It's dinnertime!"

Myra seemed to have control of the body, and got into a fighting stance. She unsheathed her claws, and smiled evilly.

"Myra, no!" Mira yelled in a high voice.

Myra bunched up her legs, and sprang forward at a sprint. I held my sword out, as she pounced on me, and swung at her, but it went right threw her! I couldn't kill her! She laughed, and bit down on my throat.

I woke up, panting.

"How many crazy, creepy dreams am I gonna' have while I'm here?" I yelled.

"I'm not sure," Lilly said, sitting criss-cross on the floor, drinking from a small cup.

"Good morning," Lilly smiled sarcatically.

"Oh, hi Lilly. Thanks for the marbles," I said, remembering the gift from yesterday.

"Hmm? Oh, you're welcome. I had the overseer get them for me," she said.

"They're just like the ones Bianca used to have," I said quietly.

"Mm hm. I figured you'd like them like that. . . . So, what was your dream about?" Lilly asked curiously.

"There was this cat, wi-with _three heads!_ A-and it attacked me! And it had purple stripes!" I babbled.

"Hmm. Well, we don't have a purple striped, three-headed cat. But, we do have Cerberus. Always have, always will," Lilly said cheerfully.

"Cerberus? The three-headed rottweiler that my dad keeps in the Underworld?" I asked.

"Huh? U-Ummmm," Lilly seemed to be searching for an answer.

"I knew it! My dad _is_ the overseer of this place, isn't he?" I asked.

"N-Nico! I-I'm not supposed to say anything about the overseer," Lilly said.

"Fine! But I know it's him!" I protested.

I walked out of my temporary room, used the restroom, walked downstairs, and dug through cabinets of food to find something for breakfast. I settled down with a box of blueberry pop tarts. I scarfed down two pop tarts, put the box up, and walked out the front door of the building. I decided to go towards the end of the boulevard, just to see if I could find anything interesting.

By the end of the day, I had found a demo CD of some girl, a picture of some guy with a really pretty girl that looked an awful lot like Aphrodite, a half-finished, celestial bronze sword, a chest plate that had been sliced through, and several more pieces of armor that had been damaged, or unfinished. I also found a couple of novels written in greek. "Hmm. Maybe they didn't sell many copies, and that's why it's here," I pondered, skimming through the pages. From what I had picked up, it was about a demi-god trying to survive in the world, unknown, but failed and had to seek other demi-gods and demi-goddesses. Apparantly, it was difficult for him, because half of the book was him searching for the demi-gods. The other novels must have been the rest of the series.

I decided to take the novels with me, as I settled down by crates of armor. The first paragraph of the first page of the prologue read: 'I didn't know where to go, or who I was anymore. Was I Derek? Or was I somebody else? If I really was a demi-god, who was my godly parent? And why didn't they tell me I was their kid? Would I ever see my friends again? Did being a demi-god have something to do with my dyslexia? Or my ADHD? And the biggest question yet, who would be the one to answer all my questions?'

I read until I fell asleep. It was a nice, dreamless sleep. For the first time since I had gotten to the boulevard, I got a good rest.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Quick warning, this chapter is the last chapter, and is mostly dialogue. Sorry it's so short, and rather disappointing, but I didn't want to change it. I like it, and I hope you will too. Enjoy. **

**Disclaimer: I, HawkAngel13, do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or Nico Di Angelo. They belong to Rick Riordan. **

**Chapter 7**

_It was a nice, dreamless sleep. For the first time since I had gotten to the boulevard, I got a good rest. _

That is, until I felt something huge, squishy, and wet rub over me. I opened my eyes, and lifted my head to look up. Staring down at me was a giant, three-headed rottweiler.

I stood up, "Cerberus!" Cerberus's left head barked, then grinned, tongue lolling out.

"What are _you_ doing here, buddy?" I asked.

"Hello, Nico," a deep voice behind me said.

I turned to see my father, smiling smugly, "Enjoying your time here?"

Lilly stood beside him, looking miserable.

I glared at my father, "What do you want?"

He pretended to look offended, "Oh Nico, is that any way to greet your father? Especially when I'm the one who's going to get you out of this place?"

"You're the one you brought me here in the first place!" I yelled.

My father grinned sinisterly, "Oh, but that's where you're wrong. _I_ am the overseer of this boulevard, but it was _Apollo _who brought you here."

"Apollo? Why?" I asked.

"Nico, all we can tell you is that you have an important role to play in the next prophecy. . . " Lilly said.

Silence. . . . . .

"Well, you have until the end of the day. Then, you will be leaving this place, and going back to Camp Half-Blood. Pack whatever you like. There will be a suitcase in the room you've been staying in," my dad said, disappearing.

I packed Annabeth's picture, a few of my mythomagic figures, Rachel's painting, the pictures of Lilly, the drawings of Blake and his family, the marbles from Lilly, and the all greek novels. Lilly talked to me for a while, and brought me a plate of food.

"I'm gonna' miss you, Nico," Lilly said, smiling sadly.

"I'm gonna' miss you too, Lil," I said, wiping my mouth.

"I'm sorry my dad brought you here," Lilly said.

"It's alright. . . . . " I said.

"No. It's not. Being here has caused you much pain," Lilly said.

"I'm alright. It gave me time to think," I said.

"You're definetly one of the nicer visitors we've had," Lilly said.

"I imagine so," I mumbled.

Later on, my father showed up, emotionless as ever. He picked up the suitcase, and shook it around.

"Not much in here," he commented.

"I took what I wanted," I said flatly.

"Alright then," he said, rolling his eyes.

"How do I get back to Camp Half-Blood?" I asked.

"We shadow travel," my father said, as if it was obvious.

"That's it? Why didn't you tell me? I could've left a long time ago!" I growled.

"No. _You_ can't shadow travel away, you have to shadow travel with _me_," my father said.

"Whatever," I sighed.

"Bye, Nico," Lilly said, her voice cracking.

Before I could say bye, my father grabbed my shoulder, and we were gone. The next moment, we were in my cabin. My father dropped the suitcase on my bed, and left.

"He's back!" I heard someone yell.

I looked outside, and saw Annabeth running up to my door.

"Nico!"

She came in, and hugged me, "Where have you been? We've all been worried sick! We thought we'd lost you too!"

"What?" I asked.

Just then, Grover, Rachel, Chiron, and a lot of other campers burst into my cabin.

"Nico!"

"You're back!"

"Where have you been?"

"We thought we'd lost you!"

"Are you okay?"

"_Hey!"_ Rachel yelled.

"_Guys, _give him some space."

Rachel pushed her way through the crowd, until she stood in front of me, serious.

"Nico, what happened to you?"

"I'm okay. I just . . . visited my father," I lied.

"Don't just leave like that! You scared us. We thought we lost you too. . . . . . " Rachel said, looking down.

"Wait! Hold up! Who else is missing?" I asked.

A lot of the crowd gasped, and whispers broke out.

"Nico? Didn't your father tell you?" Annabeth asked.

_"Tell me what?"_

Tears gathered in Annabeth's eyes, "Nico, Percy's missing."

**Author's Note: Well, that's it. That's the end. Now, I must adress another situation. This story was meant to be a prologue to another story. Whether or not I begin posting THAT story, is a mystery. I'm giving you readers and reviewers a choice. It will tell more about Lilly, and her family, and Blake. Nico is still a big part of it, but not perticularly the main character. No, the main character is someone that was very close to Lilly. So, I'd really appreciate your thoughts on this last chapter, and hear what you think of posting the other story. I don't have to post the other story. This was MEANT to be the prologue to it, but it's become an entirely different story on its own, so it's really up to you readers. If you say no, I'll just keep editing it, and continuing to make it better, and post it later on. Saying goodbye to Boulevard of Broken Dreams, HawkAngel13. **


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